The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure. Unless otherwise indicated herein, the approaches described in this section are not prior art to the claims in the present disclosure and are not admitted to be prior art by their inclusion in this section.
Machine-type communication (MTC) is a technology that may enable ubiquitous computing environments towards the concept of the “Internet of Things” (IoT). Potential MTC-based applications include smart metering, healthcare monitoring, remote security surveillance, intelligent transportation systems, and so forth. These services and applications may stimulate the design and development of a new type of MTC device that may be seamlessly integrated into current and future generation mobile broadband networks.
Existing mobile broadband networks are designed to optimize performance mainly for human-type communications. Therefore, existing networks may not be adapted or optimized for MTC-related requirements. MTC-specific designs may be explored, for example, by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). Future 3GPP specifications may support different network design, which may improve MTC-type communication.